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Ananta Narayana
Introduction Ananta Narayana was born in Evalon, the Nendeeni capital. He lived during the period of the Great War. His childhood best friends were Ajeet and Abel, though he became enemies with the latter after Ananta's Rite of Passage. He holds Supreme General Isidor in high regards. The son of a prominent General, he was subject to intense training and many high expectations. Contrary to what was expected of their conformist society, Ananta was a gentle child more interested in books and flights of fancy than learning to kill. He hated war and thought it brutish that all children were forced to grow up as warriors. Despite this rather progressive way of thinking, he fell victim to the Nendeeni pride, and was determined to earn his father's respect. Gathering up some of the other young boys that he trained and played with, Ananta prepared for his coming of age ritual and the Contracting of a Kylan. He let his youth and arrogance delude him, and approached the wyrm king demanding a Contract. Of course, the proud beast flew into a rage and attacked. Ananta's party was slaughtered, and he was badly burned. He lost his left arm, but was saved by a large gold-scaled creature named Freya. Their Contract saved his life, regardless of how bitter he was about the fact. After this, he had a prosthetic limb fashioned from steamwork parts and magic runes to replace his missing arm. It was tipped with sharp metal claws rather than functional fingers, and he used it mercilessly on the battlefield. The man's ruthless tactics earned him a quick trip up the ranks in the military, where he became known as one of king Harisha's Jade Generals under Supreme General Isidor. Story Warning! Spoilers below! Several years after Ananta's horrible failure, Evalon was informed of the impending war with Etudia. He began his recovery and became more acquainted with the creature he had formed a Contract with while preparing to go to battle. During this time, he used his father's many connections in order to have a replacement built for his missing limb. In the first wave, newly appointed Supreme General Isidor's regiment was decimated. He returned to the capital with only a few men, and Harisha decided to deploy his four generals and their groups as well to reinforce the main force. During the next set of arduous battles, Ananta proved himself to be a formidable fighter and single-handedly destroyed two enemy squads on his own. It was reported that he fought wildly using both his clawed prosthetic and his long saber. As forces are beginning to gather from all tribes and two of Harisha's generals were killed, Ananta was promoted to captain on merit of his acts of valor. While more and more Nendeeni gathered from the most distant tribeslands, the king called together his main forces and prepared to make a final push against Myanar. At this point, Ananta first laid eyes on Supreme General Isidor for the first time. On top of the stories he'd heard, Isidor's tactics and the way he treats his men touches Ananta's heart and harkens back to his younger days. Upon returning back from the battlefield victorius for a bit of a break, he learns that his father has died on the battlefield. The newly appointed captain all but spit on the man's grave and moved on without a second thought. During their next push, Isidor asks for Ananta's regiment to be under his command. His love for the Supreme General has already become something dangerous and un-traditional, and so the captain accepted the request gladly. Isidor approached him as they made camp and asked him stories of his exploits and how he gained the new title that people are using to refer to him: Ananta the Wicked. He gladly agrees to regale the older man as they travel. He meets Fidda, Isidor's Kylan, and finds that the Supreme General is impressed by his resolve and charmed by his intellect. Amidst the desert fields, and nearing the mountain range that forms the border of the Nendeeni Outlands and Etudian lands, they clashed with enemy forces. Ananta and Isidor's presence greatly boosted the morale of their troops, but the Etudian forces arrived well ahead of when they were expected. The two generals rushed in, heading the charge and meeting directly with the main enemy force. Desperate to hold them off, they gave it all they had and the battle raged for hours. Ananta struggled to stay by Isidor's side, but Fidda was felled. The Supreme General fell as well, presumably dead, and Freya covered the grief-stricken Ananta with her own body to protect them both. Isidor's mind was broken by the severing of his Kylan's bond, and he was badly injured when the battle was over. Terrified of what would happen if they were discovered, and since no one had survived the Sickness as far as Ananta had ever heard of, he took Isidor and fled into the wilderness. He staked a tent near an oasis and cared for Isidor while his body struggled to recover. His mind began to recover with Ananta's care, and the selfless love that the 'wicked' one lavished on the other. It was against his character and altogether shocking. Freya kept watch over them and kept them fed. Months later, bandits attacked their camp. Ananta managed to dispatch them easily but was wounded. Isidor, proving himself now wholly sound by some miracle, was able to care for his companion. This is the first time they broke the Nendeeni taboo of sex for a reason other than procreation, and realized that they would likely have great trouble returning to life as it were. They became completely lost in their forbidden love affair until an envoy of Harisha's armies finally found them and was able to report the Supreme General's miraculous discovery. They are called back without hesitation if only because the forces are aching sorely for morale and leadership. Three years passed as the war raged on, and Ananta and Isidor only had the chance to glimpse each other in meetings. during this time, Ananta was quietly promoted to General in order to pick up the slack his father's death left. Again, the Etudian forces had gathered and threatened the carefully defended lines of their territory. When Harisha died suddenly, an Etudian defector named Indra Marsin took up the throne and abandoned his Etudian name, Dietrich. The rumors said that he had a personal vendetta against prince Luka, and it showed. He drove the military harder than ever. Indra's own thirst for revenge fed their morale, and called the forces together enmass yet again. While settling into their encampment, Isidor received a message from one of the other generals, and was shocked to find that the other general was in fact, Ananta. Despite the fact that the new general felt a bit jilted, and how reluctant Isidor feels about the danger they are invoking, they made love again and spent the night in each other's arms. Ever glad to keep his allies happy, and having been raised among Etudian politicians, Indra is glad to assign the two to work together. He thinks nothing of Isidor's quiet request, and thinks this a happy union for the sake of their imminent victory. One night, an officer under Isidor's command overheard the sounds of their copulation and was appalled at bearing witness to such behavior from their heroes. The young man reports his findings to the rest of his group, and announces his plans to tell king's council all of the juicy details. A member of Ananta's brigade who was present was quick to run to Isidor's tent and warn them of the fate promised to anyone breaking the taboos of their society: death or a life of slavery. The couple weighed their options and chose to escape by night, carried on Freya's back. Though it pains him to do so, Indra is forced to give into the general outcry of his people's inbedded hatred towards the breaking of their laws, no matter how intolerant, and allows a group of soldiers to attempt to hunt the fugitives down. The men after them take their reaction of flight as proof of their law breaking, and determine it fine to kill on sight. The two lovers managed to evade detection right up until they made it to the mountain pass leading into Etudian territory, where the guard managed to cut them off. Freya was mortally wounded, and used her last burst of strength to bring down a huge landslide in an attempt to let the two men escape. The story goes that Ananta's madness as he fell ill and the shock of losing his lover's soundness of mind caused Isidor to kill his lover and then himself. An alternate belief is that they escaped into enemy territory thanks to Freya's last stand, and made it to Yliah. It is from there that their story spread like wildfire through Etudia, hailed as a tragic and beautiful love story. This fueled the Etudian's desire to quash the Nendeeni for good, carrying their 'free love' as a banner all the way.